Friends of the mountain

This print likely depicts animals inhabiting mountain terrain — possibly deer, monkeys, foxes, or birds that recur in Japanese nature imagery and folk tradition — framed as companions or inhabitants of the alpine environment rather than as isolated specimens. Sekino's treatment of animal subjects draws on the kacho-e and dōbutsu-ga traditions while applying his sosaku-hanga sensibility to push beyond decorative convention toward psychological presence. The plural title suggests multiple figures in relationship, either to each other or to the landscape they inhabit. Mountain settings in Japanese prints carry strong associations with spiritual retreat, seasonal change, and the boundary between human and wild domains. Compositionally, placing figures within a mountain environment involves decisions about scale and negative space that Sekino, trained in the demanding technical and aesthetic standards of sosaku-hanga, would handle with deliberate control. The print's mood is likely contemplative rather than dramatic.